As many as 10,000 refugees who have fled ethnic violence in Kyrgyzstan will receive medical assistance from International Orthodox Christian Charities (IOCC). A shipment of medicines and medical supplies delivered in cooperation with Medical Teams International is expected to arrive to Tashkent, Uzbekistan on June 25, 2010. (photo: Medical Teams International)

June 25, 2010

Baltimore, MD — International Orthodox Christian Charities (IOCC) is delivering medical supplies to assist refugee families who have fled ethnic violence in Kyrgyzstan this month. Tens of thousands of ethnic Uzbeks fled the violence and crossed the border into Uzbekistan to seek safety while others remain displaced within Kyrgyzstan.

IOCC is providing medical care for the refugees and displaced – mostly women, children and the elderly – in the form of an Emergency Health Kit with enough medicine and supplies to treat 10,000 people. The kit, valued at $421,000, is being provided in cooperation with Medical Teams International (MTI) and will arrive at Tashkent today. MTI staff will then immediately transport the kit to the eastern Uzbek city of Andijan and along the Uzbekistan/Kyrgyzstan border.

You can help the victims of disasters around the world, like the refugee crisis in Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, by making a financial gift to the IOCC International Emergency Response Fund, which will provide immediate relief as well as long-term support through the provision of emergency aid, recovery assistance and other support to help those in need. To make a gift, please visit www.iocc.org, call toll free at 1-877-803-IOCC (4622), or mail a check or money order payable to IOCC, P.O. Box 17398, Baltimore, Md. 21297-0429.

IOCC is the official humanitarian aid agency of the Standing Conference of Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas (SCOBA) and a member of the ACT Alliance, a global coalition of churches and agencies engaged in development, humanitarian assistance and advocacy.